Home / Lab test guides

How to read your lab report

Plain-language guides to the blood tests people in India get most often: what each value on the report measures, the ranges laboratories usually print, and what to ask your doctor.

• Complete blood count (CBC)How to read a CBC (complete blood count) report: haemoglobin, RBC, WBC, platelets, PCV, MCV and the differential count, with typical normal ranges used by Indian labs.
• Thyroid profile (TSH, T3, T4)How to read a thyroid profile: what TSH, T3, T4, FT3 and FT4 mean, typical normal ranges, and why a high or low TSH matters. Explained simply for Indian lab reports.
• Lipid profile (cholesterol test)How to read a lipid profile: total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides, VLDL and ratios, with the desirable levels Indian labs print and what high or low values may mean.
• Liver function test (LFT)How to read a liver function test (LFT): SGPT (ALT), SGOT (AST), bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase, GGT, albumin and total protein, with typical normal ranges.
• Kidney function test (KFT / RFT)How to read a kidney function test (KFT or RFT): serum creatinine, blood urea, BUN, uric acid, eGFR and electrolytes like sodium and potassium, with typical normal ranges.
• HbA1c and blood sugar testsHow to read diabetes tests: HbA1c, fasting blood sugar (FBS) and post-prandial (PP) sugar, the normal, prediabetes and diabetes ranges, and why HbA1c reflects three months.
• Vitamin D and vitamin B12 testsHow to read vitamin D (25-OH vitamin D) and vitamin B12 test reports: deficiency, insufficiency and normal levels, and why both are so often low in India.

These guides are general information, not medical advice. The range printed on your own report is the one that applies to you, and only a qualified doctor can interpret your results.